Update on our Adventure!
Well, it's hard to believe we are already half way through with
this 6 month adventure in Mazatlan. It's been amazing to see God's hand in so
many areas of our lives here. It really is exactly what our family needed.
Let's take a look at our original goals and see how we are doing:
#1- eliminating sugar from our diet. FAIL! I say as I sit in a
coffee shop sipping a delicious white caramel mocha. I knew the sugar thing was
going to be a huge bust as soon as Christmas Posada parties started happening
and there were pinatas everywhere we went! In addition, our lovely Spanish
neighbor who has kind of adopted us, loves to give the kids candy and treats,
or take us to the bakery right when the pastries are warm out of the oven...
and well, it just seems rude not to accept.
So, my
compromise has been to stick firmly with goal #2, eating mainly fresh,
unprocessed foods. We still to try to buy as much as possible from the local
fruit stand and meat shops close to our house, and I prefer not to have sweets
or junk food in the house. However, since Rob has been doing most of the
grocery shopping, Doritos and ice cream seem to mysteriously appear quite
often. But overall, I think our diet is still much healthier than it use to be.
The kids ask for and prefer fruit for a snack rather than crackers and
processed food (most of the time).
I joined
a local gym about a mile from our house and have been going to spin class 4-5
days a week. Rob has found a running buddy (although he's out of town every
other month for work) and with all the walking we do not having a car, I'm sure
we are meeting our 3 - 5 days a week exercise goal. Plus there are these cool
public exercise stations all over town that the kids love to stop at.
And
finally, the big one... Staying off our electronic devices 4 - 5 hours a day. I
feel like I did great at this the first month we were here.
Well, not exactly, since
we needed our phones for Uber, and navigation, and translating - we weren't
always able to completely put them away, but it was a huge improvement. Rob
struggled to stick with the plan that 1st month, and tensions rose on a couple
of occasions, but by our second month here, Rob seemed much more committed. The
third month I have completely fallen off the band wagon and could hardly go two
hours yesterday when i choose to leave my phone at home to go to Walmart.
So, I'm
in "reevaluation" stage. My dilemma is that here in a foreign country
where I am just learning the language and getting to know my way around, my
phone gives me a great sense of security. But with that comfort and security of
being able to navigate anywhere, order Ubers, translate signs and menus, or
look up websites, also comes the constant "connectivity" that I think
can be so unhealthy to our physical relationships - you know... the ones that
are right in front of us.
I don't
have answers yet. I wish I did. But I do want to do an experiment. I want to
spend a whole day without my phone to see how I feel. What things I miss the
most. What causes me anxiety? What can't I live without, and what might I, in
fact, totally love about not being so "connected" at every moment of
the day.
Stay
tuned!
Well, it's hard to believe we are already half way through with
this 6 month adventure in Mazatlan. It's been amazing to see God's hand in so
many areas of our lives here. It really is exactly what our family needed.
Let's take a look at our original goals and see how we are doing:
#1- eliminating sugar from our diet. FAIL! I say as I sit in a
coffee shop sipping a delicious white caramel mocha. I knew the sugar thing was
going to be a huge bust as soon as Christmas Posada parties started happening
and there were pinatas everywhere we went! In addition, our lovely Spanish
neighbor who has kind of adopted us, loves to give the kids candy and treats,
or take us to the bakery right when the pastries are warm out of the oven...
and well, it just seems rude not to accept.
So, my
compromise has been to stick firmly with goal #2, eating mainly fresh,
unprocessed foods. We still to try to buy as much as possible from the local
fruit stand and meat shops close to our house, and I prefer not to have sweets
or junk food in the house. However, since Rob has been doing most of the
grocery shopping, Doritos and ice cream seem to mysteriously appear quite
often. But overall, I think our diet is still much healthier than it use to be.
The kids ask for and prefer fruit for a snack rather than crackers and
processed food (most of the time).
I joined
a local gym about a mile from our house and have been going to spin class 4-5
days a week. Rob has found a running buddy (although he's out of town every
other month for work) and with all the walking we do not having a car, I'm sure
we are meeting our 3 - 5 days a week exercise goal. Plus there are these cool
public exercise stations all over town that the kids love to stop at.
And
finally, the big one... Staying off our electronic devices 4 - 5 hours a day. I
feel like I did great at this the first month we were here.
Well, not exactly, since
we needed our phones for Uber, and navigation, and translating - we weren't
always able to completely put them away, but it was a huge improvement. Rob
struggled to stick with the plan that 1st month, and tensions rose on a couple
of occasions, but by our second month here, Rob seemed much more committed. The
third month I have completely fallen off the band wagon and could hardly go two
hours yesterday when i choose to leave my phone at home to go to Walmart.
So, I'm
in "reevaluation" stage. My dilemma is that here in a foreign country
where I am just learning the language and getting to know my way around, my
phone gives me a great sense of security. But with that comfort and security of
being able to navigate anywhere, order Ubers, translate signs and menus, or
look up websites, also comes the constant "connectivity" that I think
can be so unhealthy to our physical relationships - you know... the ones that
are right in front of us.
I don't
have answers yet. I wish I did. But I do want to do an experiment. I want to
spend a whole day without my phone to see how I feel. What things I miss the
most. What causes me anxiety? What can't I live without, and what might I, in
fact, totally love about not being so "connected" at every moment of
the day.
Stay
tuned!
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